Jean-Eric Vergne followed up his eighth place in Monaco with a strong sixth in Montreal, which represented Toro Rosso’s best finish since the Sebastian Vettel days in 2008.
Vergne has thus begun to stake his claim for a possible graduation to Red Bull Racing – should favourite Kimi Raikkonen ultimately not land a seat alongside Sebastian Vettel as replacement for Mark Webber.
Vergne started seventh in Canada and a strong opening stint took him away from the midfield pack.
“It was a good race, my best race in F1,” said the Frenchman. “I had a good start, better than everybody in front, but I got blocked by various cars. I didn’t lose any positions, and then I passed Bottas quite quickly in the race, and I made a gap. I just pushed 100% until the end of the race. Sixth is great, a great result for the team, it builds our confidence. We need to keep pushing and bring a better car in Silverstone again, and bring some more good results like this.”
After a difficult rookie season last year Vergne believes that he can continue to gain momentum.
“I think the team first of all is getting better, my confidence is building up as well, and I just feel good now. It’s just a question of putting everything together, and that’s what I’m trying to do.”
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